Gamer Girl
by SL Guardian
Summary: After a car crash that she hardly remembers, 16 year-old gamer Melissa meets the Master Chief, who is now out of place in the 21st century. Other Halo elements have appeared in our world, and a big technology company seeks to exploit them in a dastardly plot that will change the world. Will Melissa and the Chief stop them, or will they fall victim to the Corporation's evil schemes?
1. Meeting

**Chapter One: Meeting**

**Hey, what's up? This is my first story, so please point out what I'm doing wrong. I'm sure there's a lot of it... Story title will probably change, since I have no good ones. Suggestions welcome.**

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><p>"How's my favorite patient doing today?" Doctor Wilson walked in, with his usual goofy smile on his face; the one that always seemed to undermine his Ph.D."There someone here to see you, darling," he said to his only patient at the time, and nodded toward the door. "It's the same guy that brought you in here a few hours ago. He says he wants to ask you a few questions."<p>

"About the accident?" asked the girl sitting on the hospital bed. She looked up from her gaming magazine and eyed Doctor Wilson. He was a tall, lanky man of about forty, and the glasses on his face only assured that he knew what he was doing. Melissa always thought that people who wore glasses were somewhat smarter than other people. She herself wore glasses, so there was some bias there.

"He didn't say," replied Doctor Wilson. "All he said was that he had some questions, and I didn't ask what about." He paused, and rubbed the back of his neck. "You, uh...you said that you don't really remember the accident, right?"

She nodded slowly. "Not all of it. There are some bits and pieces." Melissa closed her magazine and tossed it on the bedside table. "I remember driving down the road, singing along with the radio, and then there was this flash of orange light. Then, I'm here."

"I see," Doctor Wilson said. He obviously didn't believe her. It seemed highly illogical. But out here in the rural town of Twin Falls, North Carolina, some of the locals would attest to the strangest of things. "And this...light, it caused you to crash?"

"I don't really remember," Melissa answered. "Whatever happened, something hit me from the side. That's what the police said when they were filing the reports." She reached over to the table, and grabbed a piece of yellow paper.

On it were some notes that the kind officer had left her. He had hoped that writing down some observations having Melissa go over them a few times would spark her memory. "It says here that the truck suffered from impact on the right side; apparently something of great force hit it head on."

Wilson nodded. "Yes, I know. I've read the notes. They've been looking what hit your car. It's probably lost in the forest right now, far outside of the search zone."

"...how can they lose a car in the woods? In broad day light?"

"Your truck was knocked twenty feet into the woods," the doctor told her. "And even then it was hard to see from the road, with all of them bushes." He looked away from her, and down at his feet. "...and they've said that there was too much impact force for a normal vehicle. They think that what hit you wasn't a car at all."

"Really?"

"They say that the side of the car is far too torn up for it to be a car," explained Wilson. "The entire right side was completely smashed inward. There's very few cars capable of doing that much damage, and none of them are around Twin Falls."

"Then what?"

Wilson shook his head. "I do not know. However, what I do now, is that the man that found you and brought you here wants to ask you a few questions. I think you're in good enough health to answer them, if you want to."

Melissa shrugged. "Fine. But if he starts asking questions about all of that legal mumbo-jumbo, then I want a lawyer."

"Wise decision," Wilson said, as he turned and headed for the door. He placed his hand on the door knob, and cast a look over his shoulder. "And Melissa?"

"Hmm?"

"We still haven't had any luck getting in contact with your parents. We don't know what part of Australia they're vacationing in."

"That's okay. I'm fine," she replied, trying to hide her disappointment. That was like her parents. No where to be found when she really needed them. But, she was used to being on her own, so what was the difference? "The truck's totaled, but I still have access to the Jeep. We'll just deal with all of the insurance and crap when they get back."

Wilson nodded. "Fair enough. I'll fetch him in now."

Several seconds passed before the man entered the room. He stood taller than most people, easily seven feet. He had blue eyes and short brown hair. In one hand, there was a beat-up looking gray grocery bag. His well-developed muscles could be seen through the...outfit he was wearing. The material of the outfit seemed to be something that looked like rubber, but was much more protective. Melissa recognized the design immediately.

The worn, tight-fitting suit that resembled a diver's suit. There were grooves along the arms and legs where pieces of armor could be attached. A Spartan undersuit. No doubt about it. There wasn't a single thing about Halo that Melissa could make a mistake about. She knew everything right down to a T.

They stared at each other for several seconds, before Melissa finally decided to break the silence. "The doc said you had questions." She hoped to get a chance to ask her own questions. She really wanted to know what he was doing wearing that costume.

"Three," he answered curtly.

"Okay, shoot."

"First question. Where am I?"

Melissa tiled her head at him, and furrowed her brow. "Um...in the small town of Twin Falls, in the grandiose state of North Carolina."

The man thought for a moment, and then asked; "Earth, then?"

"Um...derr." Seriously, was this guy stupid or something?

"Second question. What's the date?"

Again, Melissa looked at him strange. Yep, he's stupid. Stupid or there's something seriously wrong with him. Did he had amnesia or something? Surely he would know where he was and what day it was. "It's Thursday, November 20th."

"Year?"

"...2014."

The man grunted. "Interesting." he reached into the bag and pulled out a small, flat object. "Last question. What is this?" He tossed the object to her.

Melissa almost caught it, but she fumbled it at the last second. When she got a good look at her, she raised her eyebrows. "This is a video game," she replied, tapping the Xbox One logo at the top of the game box. "I'm sure you've heard of them."

"...what's that one about?"

Looking down at the game box itself, she frowned. "It's my new copy of the Master Chief Collection. It just came out a few weeks ago. I haven't gotten to play it yet," she muttered. She was heading home after purchasing the game when she got into the wreck.

"...that didn't answer my question. What's it about?"

Melissa shrugged. "It's pretty much about the adventures of the..." she trailed off. Something clicked in the back of her head. This tall guy was wearing a Spartan undersuit, asking what planet he was on, what year it was, asking about the Master Chief Collection as a video game. None of that would make sense unless...no, she was just over thinking it.

He did have blue eyes and brown hair, just like the books portrayed him...No Melissa, she told herself, you're still a little shaken up from your accident, and this is all just something coincidental. "What's your name?"

The man looked at her. "Why does that matter?"

"Well, I'm here answering your questions, why can't you answer one of mine?"

He opened his mouth to speak, but closed before he could form any words. Eventually, he pointed at the copy of the Master Chief Collection. "I'll make a deal. You want my name, and I want to play that game. A simple trade-off."

"Um...I...okay," Melissa finally answered, and tossed the game back to him. "Here, just bring it back when you're done. I paid for it, after all." _Why did you do that?_ Screamed the rational part of her. _You just let some random stranger borrow a sixty-dollar game! What if he's just scamming you? So what? __I'll just tell my parents that it was ruined in the crash, and they'll get me a new one._

The man caught it in one hand, and looked down at the box, as if he were analyzing every single atom of the game. "Alright." he turned to leave. "I'm John," he said over his shoulder, as he opened the door. "I'll bring it back when I'm done. I promise."

Melissa's brain was on the verge of an overload. John? Coincidence? Not anymore. Someone pulling a prank on her? Possibly. But she couldn't think of a single person that would do that to her. She couldn't think of a single person that knew she liked Halo.

"Don't make a girl a promise," Melissa started, before her brain could process the words, "if you know you can't keep it."

John froze, and cast a second look over his shoulder. "Where did you hear that?"

"From the game," Melissa replied. "...from Cortana."

The man sighed and lowered his head. "That's what I was afraid of."

Melissa decided that it was finally time to test the waters. "You're him, aren't you? You're the legendary Master Chief?"

"...I am."

She knew it was true. Somehow, her mind told her that he was telling the truth. What other explanation made sense? "How? How is it possible that a video game character suddenly appears in reality?" asked Melissa, folding her arms. "That just doesn't seem physically possible."

John shook his head. "I doubt it is. But it happened. Something caused me to be here, in a different universe, where all my adventures and accomplishments have been reduced to a mere video game that people play when they're looking to have fun. I don't like that. There are things I saw during the events that these...games...portray, and there's a lot of bad memories associated with them. Things I would never want to see again, especially when I'm being controlled by idiots with a controller."

"...so, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to find my way back, somehow."

"...you want my help?"

"What?"

"If you want to get back, then you'll probably need someone who knows what's going on," she replied. "You are obviously going to draw attention to yourself dressed like that, and if you don't start acting like a local, then you'll get called out nearly instantly."

"...you're offering help to some stranger that you've never met before, and you're not asking for anything in return?"

Melissa nodded. "If what you say is true, then why shouldn't I? After all, how many Halo fans would be able to make the claim that they actually met, and assisted, the Master Chief? Not many. And, if it turns out that you are lying...my dad was in the Navy Special Forces."

"That doesn't scare me."

"I didn't think it would."

"What's our first move?" John asked, getting straight to business.

"Old doc Wilson will probably let me out of here soon, and then we'll find a place to stash you until we find out how to get you back. I don't think that my parents would take too kindly to me meeting up with a middle-aged man on a daily basis." Melissa told him. "I know a place where you can stay, it's near where I live, and no one really goes there. I can bring some food and water out to you."

John nodded. "That's kind of you. I'll gather my things. Once I'm out of sight, we'll need to figure out how I got here in the first place, and find a way to reverse that."

"Agreed."

Melissa grabbed her purse off the nightstand, and pulled two green bills from within. "Here's a twenty and a ten," she said, handing him the money. "It's not much, but you need to get some new clothes. Like I said, you'll just stand out otherwise."

John slowly reached out and grabbed the money. He was completely surprised. After scouting around the town for the past couple of hours, he expected that these people would just think he was a creep or something and call the cops. But here, there was someone who was willing to help him. He didn't think that would happen.

With a nod of appreciation, John walked to the door, and then looked back at the teenage girl. "I didn't catch your name."

"Melissa. Melissa Williams."

"For what it's worth, Melissa, thank you."

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><p><strong>Hopefully that wasn't too bad...I've really been looking forward to writing this story. There's so many ideas for this bouncing around in my head. Please leave a review!<strong>


	2. ETC

**Thank you guys for all of the feedback on Chapter 1! I haven't gotten to responding to some of the reviews yet, but I'll try to do that today. Anyway, here's Chapter 2!**

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><p><strong>Chapter Two: ETC<strong>

The town of Twin Falls was neither too small nor too large. John found that it was to his likings because of that. It was large enough to find anything he could possibly want within a five mile radius, but small enough to not have a bunch of people around should something happen.

He looked down at the money in his hand. Why had that girl helped him? She wouldn't gain anything out of it? John sighed, and closed his fist around the two bills. He had more important things to worry about right now. Finding some clothes and try to figure out how to get back to his own universe.

Pedestrians gave him strange looks as they passed, admiring his size and the odd garment that he wore. That really didn't bother John. He was used to judging looks from marines and ODSTs. The Spartan just acted casual, smiling at people he made eye contact with, and giving a rare head nod to some ladies.

As he came to a crosswalk at a four-way intersection, John could see the town's namesake. There was a mountain in the distance, with two waterfalls running down it, side by side. He then considered that since one was slightly bigger than the other, "Twin" Falls wasn't the most accurate name.

"Excuse me, sir," John said, waving to a random man on the street. "I need directions to the nearest clothing store." He motioned to his undersuit. "There was a slight incident, and I need to get some actual clothes."

The man pointed to a building across the street. "Becky's is right there," he said, in a southern accent so thick that even the Master Chief could laugh. "She doesn't have anything fancy, but she'll have something that get'cha by."

With a quick nod of appreciation, John went to the store. The older lady, presumably this Becky, furrowed her brow at the sight of him and his unearthly clothing, but then she shrugged it off and helped him find something that would fit his large frame.

Roughly ten minutes later, John walked out of the store in his new outfit. He wore a plaid shirt and a large pair of jeans that only came down to about an inch above his ankles. His Spartan undersuit was tucked into his grocery bag along with the video game. He was barefoot now, but that didn't bother him. In all his years as a Spartan, he'd walked across far more harsh terrains than these concrete sidewalks.

People would still shoot awkward glances at him, but now they were being discreet about it. Since John no longer had his undersuit on, they only could gape at his height. And their parents had taught them that it was impolite to stare. So they would peek over the tops of the newspapers and give a quick look from behind their phones.

Soon enough, he began to notice that the glances were no longer aimed at him, but rather at a scene across the street. An armored car sat outside of an electronic store while people unloaded several boxes from the back, and roughly a dozen men in suits stood around it in the same pose: staring straight forward, with their hands clasped tight behind their backs. Each had on dark shades, and they had one of those FBI communication earbuds in their ear.

John tapped a random woman on the shoulder. "What's going on? Who are they?" His fighting instincts were gently flaring up. He didn't like the way that these people looked. They were almost too...organized...to mean anything good.

"You mean you don't know?" the woman asked, keeping her gaze on the scene. "They work for the Elite Technology Corporation; the company that suddenly appeared a few months ago and already rivals companies like Google and Apple."

"Why all the security?"

The woman looked up at him. "Have you not heard? Are you living under a rock or something? Anyone can tell you that ETC has been having problems with gangs raiding their trucks and taking their products. Only one of the gangs managed to get the stuff, but that was in New York. Ever since then, any gang of street thugs that want to prove themselves have tried to rob them."

"I see..." John suddenly saw something. It seemed to him that the words on the truck seemed to be messed up. The name of the company was perfectly fine, save for the last half of the word "Corporation." That was twisted and distorted. The light coming from it was being altered somewhere between him and the truck.

No normal human would've been able to pick up on something like that from across the street. But John's senses were acute, far sharper than anyone else. Being a Spartan had seen to that. From his years as a supersoldier, he knew exactly what type of device was capable of distorting light in such a manner.

Active Camouflage.

He balled his fist, and began searching for possibilities. Elites? Unlikely. Perhaps this strange world had developed Active Camo, and it was merely used in the video games? Unlikely, since even the smart-phones here were primitive. That he wasn't the only thing that found its way into this world? Even more likely.

John decided that he would go and investigate. Looking both ways before crossing the street, he noticed that it had been blocked off by police, probably for the security of this shipment.

One of the security guards took a step towards John as he approached. "Sir, this area is off-limits while the shipment is being unloaded. You'll have to wait outside the restricted area until the off-loading is complete. We're sorry for any inconvenience that this may have caused you, but we must keep our product safe during delivery."

When the guard had taken the step up, whether by intention for intimidation or just by mere coincidence, the side of his suit jacket had shifted slightly to the side, revealing the holstered pistol there.

John thought he recognized the grip as an M6C Magnum, but he only caught a quick glimpse of it. "Oh, I'm sorry," he apologized, which was a complete lie. "I didn't mean to interrupt your job...I just had a question, that's all."

The guard tilted his head. "I really am not allowed to converse with people during my duty, unless it is to inform them that they have entered a restricted area, or to inform them of that I can't talk to them unless they've entered a restricted area."

"Just one quick, easy question, and that's it."

With a sigh, the guard nodded. "What is it?"

"What's that?" John pointed toward the figure in Active Camo, who had slowly migrated from in front of the truck to next to the door of the store.

The guard looked where John was pointing, and paused. A few seconds went by before he answered. "There's nothing there, sir. Now if you're through wasting our time-"

"Hey, you!" John called out. "You! Next to the door!"

The figure whipped its head around, and the sudden movement caused the Active Camo to falter. The character was exposed for a split second, appearing heavily transparent, but there nonetheless. In that moment, time seemed to slow down around him-something he'd heard called Spartan Time.

John got a good look at the figure. The character, which appeared to be female based off of the body proportions, was head to toe in black armor. Spartan armor. He couldn't make out the body armor variant, but the helmet seemed vaguely familiar-Scanner, maybe? She was holding a DMR with a silencer on the end, and had a Sniper Rifle, also with a silencer, on her back.

The two Spartans stared at each other for what felt like seconds, even though in reality it was less than half a second, before she faded back away into semi-invisibility.

The guards looked toward where the Spartan was-John saw the barely visible nod that the Spartan gave them-and then the guard that approached John pulled his pistol out at aimed it at the tall man in front of him. The other guards soon followed suit.

"Sir, you're going to have to leave the area. Now." he told him, keeping the weapon trained on the large human. "I've been given orders to shoot and kill anyone that seems suspicious, and you're being just that. I suggest that you leave before I decide to carry out orders."

While John was about to rip the weapon out of the man's hand, he decided that it would be best not to telegraph a presence, like Melissa had said, and to simply back away from the fight. "I'm sorry. I'll be going now." He turned and walked away.

He felt the guns on his back until he was down the block and around the corner. _Well, that was an interesting...encounter,_ he told himself. _Note to self: Look into this Elite Technology Corporation, and figure out what just happened._

That Spartan in Active Camo. She wasn't with the guards...was she? John saw the way that the guards reacted when he pointed to her. Some of them looked toward her, even though most of them didn't see where he was pointing. She nodded to them and then pulled their pistols out at him. It would seem as if she was the leader.

John stoked his chin. _The plot thickens._ Although, if he was right about that last assumption, he had to agree with that Corporation. You want security, you go with a Spartan.

"...and you're sure that you saw another Spartan there?"

"I'm sure."

Melissa ran her hand through her hair. This was certainly an interesting development. And so soon? "And you're sure that she was with Elite Tech?"

"I'm not positive, but it would seem very likely that she was," John told her, as they walked out of the clinic. "She seemed to give them the order to put me in their sights, and I don't doubt that she would've given the order to shoot should she had the time."

"Damn."

"Damn indeed," John agreed. "I suppose that our current objective is to take me back to that place you said that you could hide me, right?" He help up the grocery bag. "I still want to try out that game," he told her. "And is there a computer that I can use to do some research about this...Elite Tech?"

Melissa smiled, but it wasn't a happy one. "What do you want to know about it?" she asked, folding her arms across her chest. "I did a project on it for my FBLA club once. I know more about it than your other average teenager...it also does help that they're planning on releasing a gaming console next year. I kinda keep up on stuff like that."

John nodded. "That's good. What exactly do they make? I couldn't get a look at it back there."

"I think it would be easier to list what they don't make," Melissa replied. "They make everything. From smart-phones to heated toilet seats. Computers, TVs, various other electronics, all of them seemingly ahead of their time. Rumor has it that they're working on some secret weapon deals with the government."

"Ahead of their time...that's interesting."

"What?"

"They have technology that's more advanced than anything here, they have a Spartan guarding it, and we know that such things can move into different universes; me, for example," John clarified. "Doesn't that make some sense?"

It hit her like a wave at a rock concert. "You think that they're using Halo technology?"

"I wouldn't put it past them," replied the Spartan. "It all seems to fit together, doesn't it?"

"It does..." she agreed. Now it was clear how a company that had existed for less than a year became so powerful. They were bringing futuristic gadgets to them by ripping them from the future...or a different universe's future. "What are we going to do?"

"Simple. First things first. We're going to go to your house, and play a damn video game."

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><p>"<em>And you're quite confident that he was who you claimed him to be, Agent 32?"<em>

Agent 32 nodded, glaring at the comm screen on her HUD. The identity of the person she was speaking with was concealed by a silhouette."Yes ma'am. It was the Master Chief. I've seen him several times aboard the Infinity."

"_How and where you recall seeing him does not concern me, 32,"_ replied the calm voice of the Elite Technology Corporation's CEO. _" All I care about is that you did indeed see him today. What actions did you take against Spartan 117?"_

"I ordered the men to keep their weapons trained on them, ma'am," replied special Agent 32. "I never gave them the order to shoot. The Master Chief backed down and-"

The CEO scoffed. _"Really now? That doesn't sound like the John I know."_

"Ma'am?"

"_Oh, it was nothing. Just merely thinking to myself."_ There was a slight pause. _"Do you have people keeping an eye on 117?"_

"Yes ma'am. Right now, he appears to be with a teenage girl," Agent 32 informed the CEO. "We can't risk getting close enough to pick up on their dialogue, but I would assume that they-"

"_Never assume anything, 32,"_ the CEO snapped. _"Only I can make assumptions based off of the data that you present me. No, when you talk to me, I want facts, not your assumptions. Is that clear?"_

"...yes, ma'am."

"_Good. Now pull the surveillance on 117."_

"Ma'am? Should we consider him a threat to our company?"

"_A threat? I doubt it. In fact, I'm quite sure that he will possibly join our endeavor, once he's learned more about Elite Tech, of course," _said the CEO. _"Now pull the surveillance on him before I decide to punish you for your inability to keep yourself hidden, as per orders."_

"Yes, ma'am."


End file.
